Riom ès Contes

A Festival Born from the Meeting of Cultures

The Riom ès Contes festival was born in 2015 from the will of the association Escale Éthique, a non-profit cultural association created in 2012 in Riom-ès-Montagnes. Its founders, driven by a passion for the spoken word and a deep conviction that storytelling is a powerful vector of intercultural dialogue, imagined a festival where stories from all corners of the world meet, cross, and enrich each other. The play on words in the name — Riom ès Contes, echoing the name of the town Riom-ès-Montagnes — mischievously expresses the ambition to make this small Cantal town a true capital of storytelling.

Storytelling as a Living and Universal Art

At the heart of the festival, storytelling is celebrated in all its forms: traditional tales, popular legends, founding myths, contemporary stories, musical stories, and movement-based stories. Storytellers from France and abroad share the stage to take the audience on a journey through world cultures. Stories from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Europe mingle with Auvergne and Cantal legends, creating a fertile dialogue between oral traditions from all backgrounds.

Each edition highlights a theme or a region of the world, allowing the public to discover the depth and diversity of intangible heritage. Storytelling, an ancient art of oral transmission, finds its full unifying and emotional power here.

Performances, Workshops, and Meetings

The festival program is structured around several key events. Storytelling performances take place in various locations in the town — municipal halls, squares, gardens — creating an intimate and warm atmosphere conducive to listening and sharing. Theatrical and musical performances complement the program, sometimes blending arts in hybrid forms where speech meets music, dance, or gestural theater.

Participatory workshops invite young and old to discover the art of storytelling, story creation, story illustration, or handmade book making. These moments of shared creation are at the core of the festival's philosophy, which prioritizes exchange and participation over mere cultural consumption.

The Escale Éthique association also uses the festival to present its international solidarity projects, particularly the creation and distribution of storybooks in partnership with communities in Moldova and Peru. A sale of storybooks published by the association supports these projects while offering visitors beautiful illustrated works.

A Family-Friendly and Unifying Event

Designed for all audiences, Riom ès Contes offers a program suitable for children from a very young age, with dedicated storytelling sessions, interactive performances, and creative workshops. Adults can enjoy longer stories, storytelling evenings, and meetings with artists that nourish reflection and imagination.

The festival contributes to the cultural influence of Riom-ès-Montagnes and the Pays Gentiane by offering an original, accessible, and meaningful artistic experience. It builds bridges between residents, visitors, and artists, making each edition a special moment of sharing and conviviality in the heart of Cantal.